On what should have been a night filled with festive music and jazz improvisation, the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C. stood silent on Christmas Eve 2025. For more than two decades, the annual Christmas Eve Jazz Jam had been a cherished tradition at the nation’s most prominent performing arts venue. But this year, the event’s longtime host, Chuck Redd, made a decision that reverberated far beyond the concert hall: he canceled the show in protest after President Donald Trump’s name was added to the building, a move that has sparked controversy, legal questions, and a wave of reactions across the cultural and political spectrum.
According to The Associated Press, the sequence of events unfolded rapidly. On December 18, 2025, the Kennedy Center’s Board of Trustees—whose ranks had recently been reshuffled with members handpicked by President Trump—voted to rename the John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts. The new name, now emblazoned on the building’s facade, reads: “The Donald J. Trump and The John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts.” Within hours, the Kennedy Center’s website reflected the change, and by December 20, workers had installed Trump’s name on the side of the building.
For Chuck Redd, a respected drummer and vibraphone player who has hosted the holiday “Jazz Jams” since 2006, the decision to cancel was personal and immediate. “When I saw the name change on the Kennedy Center website and then hours later on the building, I chose to cancel our concert,” Redd wrote in an email to The Associated Press on Christmas Eve. The Kennedy Center’s website soon listed the event as canceled, confirming the loss of a beloved holiday gathering for jazz fans and families alike.
The renaming decision, while swift, was anything but straightforward. The Kennedy Center was established as a living memorial to President John F. Kennedy, who was assassinated in 1963. Congress passed legislation in 1964 explicitly naming the center in his honor and, according to legal historians cited by AP and Nexstar Media, the law prohibits the addition of any other individual’s name to the building without Congressional approval. Former House historian Ray Smock emphasized, “Any changes would have to be approved by Congress,” highlighting the legal hurdles facing the board’s action.
Indeed, the move has drawn fierce backlash from Democrats, members of the Kennedy family, and many in the arts community. Kerry Kennedy, niece of President Kennedy, publicly vowed to remove Trump’s name from the building once he leaves office. “The law explicitly prohibits the board of trustees from making the center into a memorial to anyone else, and from putting another person’s name on the building’s exterior,” she noted, echoing the sentiments of legal experts and historians.
In defending the board’s decision, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt pointed to President Trump’s “unbelievable work over the last year in saving the building. Not only from the standpoint of its reconstruction, but also financially, and its reputation.” Leavitt claimed that Trump’s leadership had been instrumental in revitalizing the Kennedy Center, a view that supporters echoed. The president himself had been openly suggesting for months that he was open to changing the center’s name, and his ascension to Board Chair in February 2025—replacing David M. Rubenstein—marked a turning point for the institution’s governance.
President Trump’s involvement with the Kennedy Center in 2025 was marked by sweeping changes. He replaced board members appointed by previous presidents with his own selections, and the board then elected him as its chair. He also hosted the Kennedy Center Honors, breaking with a long-standing tradition of presidents serving as observers rather than as hosts. According to Nexstar Media, these moves were part of a broader effort to reshape federal cultural institutions and, as some critics argue, to combat what Trump has described as “woke” culture.
The renaming, however, has not only sparked legal and political controversy but also triggered a cultural backlash. Several prominent artists, including Issa Rae, Peter Wolf, and Lin-Manuel Miranda, have canceled planned performances at the Kennedy Center since Trump’s return to office in 2025. Miranda, for example, called off a production of “Hamilton,” a show with its own deep resonance for American history and identity. For many in the arts world, the renaming represents a politicization of a national cultural landmark and a challenge to its original mission as a nonpartisan tribute to President Kennedy’s legacy.
The Kennedy Center’s silence on Christmas Eve was thus more than an isolated protest by one musician. It was emblematic of a broader struggle over history, memory, and the role of the arts in public life. The Christmas Eve Jazz Jam, which dates back more than twenty years, had become a symbol of continuity and community. Its abrupt cancellation underscored the depth of feeling stirred by the board’s decision and the broader debate it has unleashed.
Many legal scholars and historians remain skeptical about the board’s authority to rename the building. The Kennedy Center was created by an act of Congress, and its status as a memorial is enshrined in federal law. As AP reported, “Scholars have said [the renaming] violates the law.” The controversy has already led to legal challenges, with at least one Democratic representative filing a lawsuit seeking to remove Trump’s name from the center. The outcome of these challenges remains uncertain, but the debate has thrust the Kennedy Center—and its storied place in American cultural life—into the national spotlight.
Meanwhile, the Kennedy family and their allies have vowed to fight the name change. Kerry Kennedy’s pledge to restore the building’s original name after Trump leaves office reflects a determination to preserve her uncle’s legacy and the intent of Congress when it established the memorial. For many, the Kennedy Center is more than just a venue; it is a living testament to ideals of public service, civic engagement, and the transformative power of the arts.
As of now, the Kennedy Center has not issued a formal statement on the controversy. Its website continues to reflect the cancellation of the Christmas Eve Jazz Jam, and the building’s new signage stands as a visible marker of the ongoing dispute. For Washingtonians and visitors alike, the changes at the Kennedy Center have turned a familiar landmark into a focal point for national debate, raising questions that will likely echo well beyond this holiday season.
One thing is certain: the Kennedy Center’s future—and the resolution of its name—remains unsettled, as Americans grapple with questions of history, honor, and who gets to shape the narrative of the nation’s cultural heart.
